Must Suck Getting ‘Stuck’ In Perfect Indo

Tapped – in the words of filmmaker Peter Laing

After making what my British peers considered a relatively controversial decision: moving to Indo during COVID (clearly, not all my mates in the UK are surfers), I stumbled across Evan Puma. 

One day at a bar in Ulus, I heard this loud Bajan/English/Canadian accent say, ‘Cool shorts, man, I was there too.’ As a typically stingy broke surfer, I was still wearing the free boardshorts that were handed out to competitors at the 2017 ISA junior world champs in Japan. A competition we both attended where Evan did pretty well, and I was humiliated (Scotland U18s were dismantled by the lethal combination of big sponsor stickers and supplement-fed super-groms). In short, without wanting to portray this as a tropical teen love affair, Evan and I met at sunset in a cute beachside bar.

Now that our romantic foundations are covered, we can talk about the project. The waves showcased in the film are all from the 2021 Indo dry season. Amongst the lockdowns and epic crowd-less days scored together, the first conversation about the edit happened when we were on a boat trip in the Ments. It was the afternoon after a freak session at Greenbush, where Evan took the first wave of a set and I took the second. With what was undoubtedly an overly exuberant claim, my stoke overflowed and Evan (relieved not to see me bottle the perfect wave) was there to share this priceless moment with me. During the high of that trip, we realized the potential of all the clips that he had accumulated. It was not until returning to Bali that Evan transferred all the footage he had gathered throughout the season. After first viewing the waves from countless perfect sessions, all together on one timeline, I understood that we could make something special here.

Just as I started to go out and film all the cinematic footage for the project, I came across Ohad Eshach, who had just moved into the same homestay as me. The highly talented Israeli sound designer and understatedly good surfer showed me the sound recordings he had taken throughout his travels across Indonesia. They were spectacular, and after discussing the ideas I had for the short film, he was equally excited to be part of the project. As things often are with surfers, this whole piece began spontaneously, and in the least spiritual nut job way, it genuinely felt like it was meant to be. 

The film not only seeks to highlight the talent Evan has in the tube but also to show what Indonesia 2021 was like for us. Despite much of last year’s fearmongering and growing socio-political tensions, we hope that everyone who has the time to watch ‘Tapped’ is entertained and sees how pristine and stunning all Indonesia’s natural ecosystems are when left relatively untouched for a brief period. 

I hope this offers good context to the film and a glimpse of the authentic moments and memories we are all so fortunate to have as surfers.